


Heartstrings

by have-a-little-laith (LWritesx)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Altean Lance (Voltron), Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Boys In Love, Canon Compliant, Falling In Love, Feelings, Firsts, Gay Keith (Voltron), Gen, Grief/Mourning, Healing, Hurt Lance (Voltron), Keith (Voltron) is Bad at Feelings, Keith (Voltron) is a Good Friend, Keith/Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance (Voltron) is Good With Kids, Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, Mutual Pining, Oblivious Lance (Voltron), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Alternating, Past Allura/Lance (Voltron), Pining, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Post-Season/Series 08 Finale, Rating May Change, Shiro (Voltron) is a Good Friend, Slow Burn, Swearing, Tags Are Hard, cosmo is the best boy, mostly langst who am i kidding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-18
Updated: 2019-03-18
Packaged: 2019-11-06 14:22:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17941355
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LWritesx/pseuds/have-a-little-laith
Summary: The events of the final battle against Honerva left the team reeling from an unexpected loss. Fifteen months later, everyone is still coping, but still moving on. That is, everyone except Lance.In space, the Blade Of Marmora is facing a potential crisis: rouge Galra in control of Haggar's experimental creatures and armies of sentries, so Keith is sent to earth by Krolia to assess the threat level, with the help of a newly married Shiro.And in the midst of all the chaos, Lance has to face reality. Luckily, Keith and his friends are there with him every step of the way.





	Heartstrings

**Author's Note:**

> it seems that i would have an addiction to klance so here's a post s8 fic, with spoilers, obviously. i realized that i'm still feeling kinda iffy about the whole ending so this is my form of closure. i hope you guys enjoy this. also, yes, i am aware that everything is in lowercase. please note that due to exams, this will be updated pretty slowly, so the next one should be up in may.  
> 

You used to captivate me by your resonating light,

Now, I'm bound by the life you left behind,

Your face, it haunts my once pleasant dreams,

Your voice, it chased away all the sanity in me.

_-evanescence_

**THIRTEEN MONTHS AGO**

_It's a beautiful morning. The sun is hot, but not too hot. A calm breeze wafts through his third-floor room, a butterfly settling on the edge of the open window. He moans softly, pulling the covers over his head._

_Not today._

_His room door creaks slightly, and he closes his eyes, feigning sleep._

_Not today._

_"Good Morning, Lance," Veronica says as if she's talking to a small child, "Mamí left you breakfast. Shiro also called for you... He asked if you'll be there later."_

_A pregnant pause._

_"I told him that I wasn't sure," Veronica continues awkwardly, "But I do hope you go. It's been a few months since you've last seen anyone except for Katie."_

_His door shuts softly as Veronica leaves._

_Lance rolls over, tucking his face into a pillow, and releases a few tears._

It's not fair, but you need to be happy for Shiro. Shiro deserves to be happy today especially, don't you dare take that away from him.

_Later that afternoon, he eyes the suit in front of him, warily. He drapes the white shirt around his shoulders, buttoning it and then tucking it into the white pants. There's a blue waistcoat, so he affixes it over the shirt. Finally, he grabs the white jacket and goes downstairs to have his mamí tie the blue bow-tie that came with the suit._

_"Oh, mijo," she gasps, "You look so wonderful."_

_"Thank you," he replies, giving her the smile that he'd been practicing for hours in the mirror mounted on his bathroom wall._

_She quickly does the bow-tie, standing on the tips of her toes._

_Veronica comes down the stairs then, in an elegant, floor-length, blood red dress with lace trimmings and a full face of makeup, holding the keys for their car._

_She glances at Lance, raising her eyebrow in a questioning manner._

_"Are you wearing foundation?" she asks._

_"Maybe I am," Lance shrugs, really not in the mood to deal with this, "Maybe I'm not."_

_Rolling her eyes, she stomps out the room. Lance barely holds back an eye-roll of his own._

_"Mijo," his mother snaps at him._

_"Sorry," he sighs, "See, this is another reason why I don't want to go. Everybody's gonna be like, oh, Lance, I'm so sorry for your loss.”_

_“Are you okay, Lance? Is there anything we can do, Lance? Like those stupid questions going to make me feel better or bring her back. And everybody knows I looked like crap before. I can't handle them asking are you wearing make-up?” he rants, furiously, “Did you pluck your eyebrows? Does that mean you're joining the land of the living once again? They're going to look at me and judge me, and my life is none of their business, mamí."_

_"I know, sweetheart," his mom says, wrapping her arms around him, gently resting her head on his chest, "But you must always remember, their stares and words do nothing but remind you that you are alive, sí? And you cannot let the opinions of others influence you to change who you are.”_

_“Honey, your smile used to give the sun a run for its money, but now all I can see in that smile of yours is pain and sorrow. You must allow yourself to heal,” she continues, and the tears that well in her eyes sting._

_Lance knows she feels his grief. His mother will always be one of the most emphatic persons he'll ever know._

_“Let go, and heal. I'll always be here to tell you to breathe, mi vida,” she sniffs._

_Lance kisses the top of his mother's head and disentangles from her embrace._

_"Gracias, mamí. I should go," he murmurs, "I don't want to be out too long tonight."_

_"Mi niño," she replies sternly, "Enjoy yourself. Do not spend your entire life burdened by your grief. I know your friends miss you, and you must miss them. Don't let this time go to waste."_

_"I'll think about it," is all he says as he exits the kitchen._

_Lance jumps when he hears a horn honk outside. He rolls his eyes._

_Stupid Veronica._

_The reunion of Team Voltron is as awkward as a reunion can get._

_Like Lance, they're all wearing white tuxes with colored bow-ties, waistcoats and slicked back hair. Unlike him, they chose to wear the insignia that indicated their rank of lieutenant, a position that had the Garrison had graciously awarded to them when they'd returned to Earth._

_There are a few quirks that subtly show that they've all aged; Hunk with freshly cut bangs poking out of his classic yellow bandanna, as well as the few dark hairs under his mouth that form a tiny goatee; Pidge with new glasses, long hair in a bun, suit hugging curves Lance never knew she had._

_Even Shiro is more buff than he's ever been, his prosthetic hand replaced by a brand new one that looked to be of Pidge's design, Lance notices, as the man gives him a dazzling smile together with an all-encompassing hug and a small, shy, "Thank you for coming."_

_And Lance just smiles and nods because that's all he can do._

_The ceremony is short and sweet, and Lance doesn't waste time hitting up the open bar at the reception._

_Hunk and Lance exchange awkward pleasantries before he runs off with Pidge to the MFE's, discussing strategy. It's an ironic twist of fate that he and Hunk used to be the best of friends, but Hunk left Earth to help with inter-planetary diplomacy and Lance ended up closer to Pidge. Lance isn't mad though; that was Hunk's calling and he's happy for the guy. Just because he's sad doesn't mean that everyone else had to be sad, too._

_The grooms are dancing on the floor, lovingly staring into each other's eyes._

_Lance nurses his drink miserably alone but jumps when he hears the stool from beside him scraping against the floor._

_"Hey," the former Black Paladin nods to him, and then says to the bartender, "Rum and coke, please."_

_Lance nods in return, silently eyeing his former leader. His hair is long enough to be tied back with a tiny black scrunchie and he's almost a full head taller than Lance. The insignias on his suit give away his rank of commander and his Blade status as a lieutenant general._

_"You okay?" Keith continues, "How's Miranda?"_

_"Everyone's fine," Lance says, tone clipped._

_"Oh," Keith replies, "That's good."_

_He looks like he's about to say something else, but he's whisked off to somewhere by a fellow Blade._

_There's nothing for him left at this wedding, Lance realizes._

_He sighs dejectedly and calls Luis to pick him up._

*                       *                       *

 There's a ship on the makeshift airstrip on the far left of the farm, and Lance can just barely make out the black, red and grey color scheme, distinct to the Blade of Marmora.

 _Must be Keith,_ he thinks, _But what would Keith be doing here?_

Before he knows what's going on, Sylvio and Nadia rush off towards the ship, laughing excitedly.

"Hey!" he calls after them, but they don't stop.

"Sylvio!" he yells, "Nadia!"

A boarding ramp materializes at the back of the ship and Keith, mask off, descends.

When he's at the base, Sylvio and Nadia jump him and they fall down in a fit of childish giggles.

"Uncle Keith! How was Falerion?" Sylvio asks.

"I told you guys to just call me Keith, bud," Keith scolds playfully, ruffling Sylvio's hair gently. His small smile catches Lance off guard for a moment.

He's never seen Keith smile like that.

"Got you guys something," he continues, grinning, as he reaches into the pocket of his utility belt.

He presents two pendant-like stones attached to a synthetic leather necklace. When they're placed into Sylvio and Nadia's hands, they ignite into a plethora of colors before settling on a murky gray for Sylvio and a deep purple for Nadia.

Nadia gasps, eyes shining.

"This is so cool, thank you, Keith," she engulfs him in another hug, "I love it!"

"It adopts a color based on the wearer's personality," Keith tells them, “Once a color claims you, it can never be replicated for someone else.”

Lance allows a small smile to flit across his lips. He knows they'll add this to their ever-growing collection of planetary souvenirs they’ve acquired through Keith.

His enigmatic violet-grey eyes meet Lance's blue gaze, "We need to talk."

Nodding, Lance tells his niece and nephew, "Your papí is going to come for you guys in a few minutes. Go back into the house and let tía Rachel get you guys ready for a bath, alright?"

"You guys could just tell us you've got grown-up things to talk about," Sylvio pouts, "We're kids, not stupid."

Keith shrugs, saying, " Okay, I mean, you figured me out pretty easy. I actually _do_ have some grown-up stuff to discuss with Lance, but I promise I'll play with you guys after."

That brings a smile to Sylvio's face, and he practically drags Nadia back to the farm.

"That kid practically hero worships you, for some reason," Lance mumbles.

Keith shrugs, "I dunno why. Didn't do anything to deserve it."

Deep down, Lance wants to correct Keith. Of course, he deserves the hero worship; he was the Paladin of the Black Lion, he's a current member of the Blade of Marmora, a certified badass who helped save Earth, and by extension, the Universe. And he's still helping the Universe, which is pretty epic.

"Why are you here, Keith?" he sighs, instead.

"My mom wants me to stay on Earth for a little while. We've been picking up some rouge Galra activity over surveillance and we want to make sure that Earth remains safe," Keith explains.

"But Pidge was a Paladin," Lance replies, "Can't she take them?"

"Even if she had the Green Lion, I still wouldn't let her face them alone. There's a risk that these rouge Galra still has control over armies of sentries. And with all the experiments that we found out Haggar was conducting,” Keith says, seriously, "Both her and Shiro may not be able to take them alone."

"No," Lance says, almost panicked, "Keith, no. We've risked everything to protect Earth. We can't deal with this again. We don't have Voltron this time. We can't-- We lost her, I lost--"

"I know, I know," Keith tries to pacify, "Listen to me, Lance. This is precautionary. We don't know for sure that there's something coming. Shiro and I are running point together on this. The Blades will not let this evolve into an actual threat. For now, all we can do is observe."

"Okay," Lance breathes after a brief pause, panic fading from his eyes, "Okay. Well, you know the guest bedroom is yours-- per mamí's orders."

Keith smiles, and Lance smiles back.

If anyone notices his slightly more cheerful mood after Keith's arrival, they don't say anything about it.

*                       *                       *

The kids today are quiet. They listen to Lance's lecture about Princess Allura, about her dream to spread peace to not only this universe but all universes, the new Altea. They cradle the juniberries as though they're the most fragile of dolls. When Pidge comes in to run various tests, a task she does every day without fail, they sit in silent awe of her vast expanse of knowledge, very few deciding to satisfy their curiosity by asking questions. They eye Keith with a suspicious, untrusting gaze that he can tell leaves Lance somewhat amused.

Honestly, it was such a sight to see Lance looking slightly amused, a barely-there smile on his lips rather than with pallid, dry, ill-colored skin, swollen, bloodshot, baggy eyes, a red nose, and cracked lips; voice scratchy and hoarse after hours upon hours of heartbroken sobs, practically drowning in his own grief and denial.

Pushing the mental picture away, Keith observes the children with a dull pang in his chest. Some of these kids were still suffering the trauma of the attack against Earth, the trauma of losing loved ones. He can't help but think that this whole thing was bullshit; these kids hadn't gotten their chance to be kids, some of them had to grow up pretty fast when their caretakers died, and damn if Keith didn't know how that felt.

Like hell was he gonna let the Galra strip even more of their innocence away from them, he'd quietly sworn to himself in front of his father's grave, the Galra would never set their eyes upon Earth's solar system again.

And he'd had no regrets in doing so. In fact, Shiro would agree with him.

At the other side of the tree that he's sitting under is Lance. His chestnut locks had become damp with sweat, mocha skin glowing; he'd ended up giving Keith the straw hat he wore since Keith was bound to get a bad sunburn from sitting in the blazing heat with no sunscreen.

He'd had a drawer of clothes stored in the guest room, but somehow was always forgetting to bring headgear, and Lance refused to let Keith use “that other monstrosity in front of the children".

(Re: “that other monstrosity” was pitifully, his blade mask.)

Lance's flannel button-down shirt was tied around his waist, leaving him in a white undershirt and jeans, with a tall pair of garden boots on his feet.

He hums quietly as he watches Pidge work on the flowers.

Juniberries require the most delicate of care. Not enough light can cause the plant to fall apart. Too much light causes the plant to become soggy with a bright, unattractive salmon colored flower, and it eventually dies, shriveled up into a tiny black puddle.

The water had to be the right temperature, and the number of acids and alkaloids entering the plant had to be regulated, Lance had explained to Keith.

"What's it like at the Blade?" a tiny kid with small, striking grey eyes asks, breaking his train of thought.

"Oh," Keith says, "It's uhm, it's good. It can be pretty boring, so we usually pair up and run through battle sims most of the time. But I'm helping my mom and Kolivan turn the Blade into... a better organization. What we’re doing is helping those planets that were damaged badly by the Galra get back on their feet."

“Do you need to be Galra to join?” the kid continues.

“No, that rule was abolished when the war ended,” Lance speaks up, surprising Keith, “You need to be eighteen to join, though.”

The kid, to both their shock and amazement, looks disappointed.

“Did you want to join the Blade?” Keith asks.

He nods shyly, explaining: “I want to join to protect my sisters, Aleesha and Vivianne. So nothing would happen to them.”

“Hey,” Keith lowers himself to the kid's level, gripping his shoulders, gently, “Let the adults handle this one, okay? Go be a kid.”

He smiles at Keith and gives a small nod, then scurries off to join a circle of kids.

“That was cool of you,” Lance observes.

Keith shrugs, telling Lance his earlier thoughts, “They need to enjoy what remains of their childhood. Growing up too fast is not good for them.”

“Speak from experience?” Lance asks.

“Mhmm,” Keith hums.

“Excuse me,” a little girl interrupts their conversation.

“Can we help you?” Lance asks, kindly.

If there’s one thing that never changed about Lance that always amazed Keith (and he'd admired time after time) was the fact that despite his mood, despite whatever he was feeling, he was always kind and patient with children.

“I found this where you were sitting and thought I'd give it to you,” she says, voice accented, and that accent sounded so familiar that Keith could have sworn he was talking to....

His eyes pop open almost as wide as Lance's as he takes in the girl; she's almost seven and tiny for her age. Small ears, high cheekbones, a gentle heart-shaped face. Short white blonde-hair with a lethal blue gaze. And those eyes.... those eyes seemed full of depth, full of life, a hidden pain in her gaze, an old, regal power dancing in her gaze, too.

“What's your name?” Lance asks the little girl, shakily.

“My name is Alaina,” she says, “It's right here on my tag. Anyway, I wanted to give this to you because you remind me of my daddy.”

“I do?” Lance asks, still shocked.

“When my mummy died, daddy used to look like you do. Sad. Unhappy. And then he met Eleanor, and she helped him be happy again,” she pushes the flower into Lance's hand, and fixes him with her piercing blue gaze, “And I think you deserve to be happy too, Lance.”

Then, a little boy with equally as blonde, but longer hair runs up to them, calling, “Alaina! Miss Sandra and Miss Rose are ready to leave now!”

“Oh, sorry, Liam,” she pouts, looking quickly at him, then her gaze flits back to them, back to Lance, “Goodbye, Lance. Goodbye, Keith.”

It's hours after the blue-eyed girl, Alaina, left with her class, and the goose bumps that appeared on Keith's skin haven't left. Lance isn't better off, either, but they've come to the same conclusion: their experience with the little girl was nobody's business but their own.

And later on in the night, if Lance wakes up screaming and sobbing from a nightmare starring a girl with the same piercing blue gaze as little Alaina, if Keith races into his room and talks him down from a panic attack, if Lance collapses into his arms, a sobbing, hysterical mess, and if Keith comforts him patiently, staying with him, soothing him till he falls back asleep, then that's nobody's business but their own, either.


End file.
